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The Marxist Conspiracy - Not forgetting the evil things that have already been done!

The arrests began in the early hours of the 21st of May 1987. Within a span of a few hours, 16 men and women of most of whom were social workers, dramatists, Roman Catholic Church welfare workers and lawyers, were arrested by the Internal Security Department for being part of a 'Marxist Conspiracy'. The government then said that the conspirators had links with Filipino leftists and proponents of ''liberation theology,'' as well as with European Marxists and Sri Lankan separatists. The detainees were then accused of trying to use Roman Catholic, student and other groups to build a legal front as a cover for political sabotage.

The 'threat' was so real that in 1988, then Prime Minister designate Mr. Goh Chok Tong addressing a conference of the National Trade Union Conference and stressing that political stability was an essential ingredient for wage increases; pronounced that should the political conspiracy have succeeded, "you can kiss your wage increases for this year goodbye".

But how real was the 'threat'? For merely five weeks after the initial arrests, the Foreign Minister, Mr. S Rajaratnam complained that over 200 organisations from around the world had sent protest letters to the government indicating that they do not believe there is an internal Communist threat in Singapore.

A Statement from Lawyers Rights Watch Canada states that some of the 'conspirators' did not even know each other prior to the arrest. The only opposition Member of Parliament at that time, Mr. Chiam See Tong, called them "innocent young idealists." And even the then Home Affairs Minister, Mr. Shanmugam Jayakumar who said that, "for critics abroad, if you want to understand the action, you must also understand Singapore's unique circumstance and problems", admitted that the detainees were mere novices.

If the 'conspirators' were mere novices, what was the real reason for the arrest and subsequent detention without trial for these 'Marxists'?

The International Commission of Jurists, who continually called the then Singapore government "to prove this alleged 'conspiracy' in open court, and give those detained a fair trial", deduced in an investigative report that the real motive for the arrests and subsequent detention without trial of the 'conspirators' is to quash internal opposition and criticism of the Singapore government, not to protect the security and welfare of Singapore society against a Marxist conspiracy.

Whatever the real reason, the arrests and detention without trial of the 'Marxist Conspirators' sure repressed an entire generation of young Singaporeans from involvement in any activity that could be termed "political".

"Repression, Sir is a habit that grows. I am told it is like making love-it is always easier the second time! The first time there may be pangs of conscience, a sense of guilt. But once embarked on this course with constant repetition you get more and more brazen in the attack. All you have to do is to dissolve organizations and societies and banish and detain the key political workers in these societies. Then miraculously everything is tranquil on the surface. Then an intimidated press and the government-controlled radio together can regularly sing your praises, and slowly and steadily the people are made to forget the evil things that have already been done, or if these things are referred to again they're conveniently distorted and distorted with impunity, because there will be no opposition to contradict." (Mr. Lee Kuan Yew as an opposition PAP member speaking to David Marshall, Singapore Legislative Assembly, Debates, 4 October, 1956)

------------21st May 2009, marks the 22nd anniversary of this repressive detentions. A group of concerned Singaporeans are coming together to make a statement that "we will not forget!". You are invited to come to Speakers Corner and remember this day with us.

"Where were the Farid Khans and the Salleh Maricans? Why didn't they come?... Because they knew that in an open election - all things being equal - a non-Chinese candidate would have no chance."
Having contested an election as a minority candidate, I am disturbed enough by his comments to write this note. Let me explain why.

Simple answer for PM Lee

I declined invitations to contest the 2011 General Election. This was because I was at a different stage of my life. My children were much younger, I had just come back from the USA a few years before and had to re-establish my career here. I did not know if I had the temperament for public life. These were just some of the reasons why I chose to decline those invitations.

Even in 2011, the pool of people who could qualify for the Presidential race was small.…

The Ministry of Communication and Information (MCI) has taken out a Facebook ad titled, 'Get real about fake news', The ad is taken out after the PAP-controlled Parliament passed the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation (POFMA) Bill, with all opposition Members of Parliament voting against the Bill.

The ad draws attention to the viral hoax that Punggol Waterway Terraces had collapsed. The ad said "the hoax triggered anxiety amongst the residents", and urged Singaporeans to "say no to fake news".

It is unfortunate that a website published such an unverified report, and it is certainly unacceptable that it caused much anxiety to the residents of the development (and to all Singaporeans). The publishers and the editors of the website acted irresponsibly in posting the report of the 'collapse' without proper verification, and no one should make any excuses for them for this.

Lamenting the lack of concentration of brilliance in Singapore, PM Lee Hsien Loong in a IPS dialogue held recently said that he believed in having a certain natural aristocracy in the system (a form of elitism where people are respected because they have earned that) for without that society will lose out. (Transcript of Speech here: http://bit.ly/1JOtiYP)

His views are of course not new and he had articulated them in another Speech in the year 2007, expressing why he believed that Singapore does not have enough talent for two A-Teams (link: http://bit.ly/1NFyA9s).

I am not sure if this view is healthy for Singapore. Why I say that? Let me quote a few persons and articles before I make my point.